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Home Decorating with Textured Paint

August 16th, 2013

Home Decorating with Textured Paint

Textured paint and faux finishes have become quite popular in recent years. One reason for this is because so many home improvement stores are offering classes for those who are willing to pay the price for the paint so that the average homeowner can recreate these fabulous finishes on their own walls without hiring a professional. The fact is it is truly amazing what works of art can be created with the clever and creative use of textured paint.

And you don’t have to be an artist to achieve it.

Faux finishes can be used to create the illusion of anything including plaster, brick, and leather. Most home owners can achieve a lovely results if they are willing to take the time required to properly learn the technique, and spend some time practicing before tackling the whole room.

Did you know that even wood grains can be imitated through the use of a talented faux finisher and paint. The famed Winchester Mystery House has this. Sarah Winchester could only easily obtain redwood planks but wanted the look of oak and pine. So faux finishes have been around a long time. The resurgence is probably due to simpler materials and the “free” training.

Using textured paints and faux finishes can be done in almost any room in the house though they seem to be most common in living rooms and kitchens as a major design feature. There are some ambitious homeowners who have decided to take this style of painting into every room of the home. While it may seem a good idea in theory there are some drawbacks to this as well.

First of all, textured paints and faux finishes are very time consuming. If you are hiring a professional to do the work their time is a lot of your money and this is something that really needs to be considered. Is the amount of time really worth the reward of the finished project as far as you, as the homeowner, are concerned?

And if you’re not hiring a professional, is that how you want to spend your free time?

Most people find that it isn’t worth all that much money and time but others really want to achieve the look which increases their enjoyment of their homes. Whichever category you fall into it is important that you realize that this could become a costly proposition.

Another issue is how the home will look when you’ve completed the work. In small doses faux finishes and textured paints are novel and spectacular. In large doses they can be more than slightly overwhelming and, more importantly, unimpressive. Visitors won’t realize all of the craftsmanship if the whole house looks the same.

This doesn’t mean that some homes do not wear faux finishes beautifully in almost every nook and cranny (like maybe Victorians?). There are some homes however that beg for moderation. Listen to your home when decorating and you should have a much better decorating experience overall without overwhelming either your home or your guests.

If faux finishes and/or textured painting is something you would like to incorporate into your home decorating plans you should be delighted to discover that there are many, many resources both online and offline that can assist you with your goals.

The best place to start is with your local hardware and home improvement stores to see if they are offering any free workshops. If they are then you are set.

If not, check out your local library for videos, magazines, and books that offer step-by-step instructions. Then buy a small amount of the paints and practice on some spare wood (or an unused room).

The Internet is also an excellent source. Do not forget the value of spaces such as YouTube and Google Video as they may have some actual demonstrations or how to videos to help as well. You might want to watch videos after the class anyway.